Everything I learned playing Bloodborne on PlayStation 4

Although it doesn’t have “Souls” in its title, Bloodborne feels like it belongs with franchise through and through. It has that same gloomy atmosphere. It has the touches of phenomenal monster design. And yes, the game possesses that familiar level of difficulty. In the demo I played, I perished twice before figuring out that maybe an enormous armor-clad knight wasn’t the right adversary for the moment.

While Bloodborne adopts much of the feel of the Souls games, there are differences. Instead of taking place in a dark-fantasy realm, it appears to be set in Victorian era world, where its denizens don top hats and wield axes. The city of Yharnam was known for its medical marvels before being abandoned to its twisted residents, and the protagonists has entered the municipal limits.The residents of Yharnam will attack you on sight.

CHOOSING WEAPONS: Before playing, I had to choose between two weapon sets. The first was a Saw and Blunderbuss combo (standard) and the second was an Axe and Pistol loadout called heavy. Getting into the demo, I was immediately struck by the differences in control and combat. Bloodborne feels much faster than the methodical Souls titles. The fact that the protagonist doesn’t have a shield has a lot to do with it.

Players can’t just wait for an attack or bait one from an enemy. They’ll have to be more aggressive and eliminate adversaries before they have a chance to counterattack. Combat has more of a read and react feel as players have to anticipate a monster’s attack, dodge it and counter. Thankfully, the backstep is quicker than the rolls of Dark Souls and that lets players maneuver the battlekilling field more easily.

Another element players will have to adjust to is the weapons. The protagonist can carry two (one in each hand and they can switch using the D-pad), but the interesting thing is that the main melee weapon can transform. By pressing L1, the axe/saw can go from a short quick blade to a long-reaching scythe. The longer weapon is also more powerful. Meanwhile, players can fire off guns using the L2 trigger while the R2 trigger can be held for a more powerful attack.

If you see this many bad guys, it’s best to just follow them or stay away.

A MORE CREATIVE COMBAT SYSTEM: If the Souls games is all about learning and bonding with a single weapon, it seems as though Bloodborne gives players more flexibility when it comes to combat. They can alternate between long and short weapons in a combo by hitting L1 and R1 one after another. The blunderbuss was useful in stunning werewolves, leaving them open for a flurry of blades. Thankfully, ammo for the weapon was common as a pickup and not scarce. Elsewhere, I ambushed some ogres by tossing a Molotov cocktail I picked off the ground.

Despite the creativity and combos, the game doesn’t resemble anything like Bayonetta. It still retains the Souls emphasis on being careful and smart about encounters. Players shouldn’t Rambo a crowd of baddies or they’ll be overwhelmed and die. It’s best to fight one or two adversaries at a time and if the situation gets out of hand, it doesn’t hurt to just run away.

Bosses are just as big as you’d expect from a Souls-type game.

INTENSE BATTLES: When I was playing through the demo, I handled the first few encounters fairly well, but as I ventured deeper into Yharnam, the skirmishes grew more intense. There were ambushes when I didn’t check around corners. There were situations where I could see a giant creature ahead of me and I debated whether I should engage it or not.

I even ran into an NPC in trouble. I helped him out against two werewolves. A representative said that he was supposed to help you on the boss fight on a bridge, but he didn’t show up. Maybe I helped him out too late or perhaps that was a bug or trigger I missed. Whatever the case, I had to fight this enormous creature (above) alone. I did manage to damage it, but I died when I hit the drink-potion button too late and got hit during the animation. It’s one of many deaths that I expect to have playing Bloodborne, a title that’s scheduled for release next year on the PlayStation 4.